Downfall

The Intel Core i5-12400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti delivers overwhelming performance in Downfall, a horror title that clearly favors raw GPU throughput over multi-threaded CPU muscle. Across every resolution tested, this combination exceeds the 60 FPS playability threshold by a substantial margin, with even the most demanding preset at 4K producing an average of 69.6 FPS. The data shows a system that is not merely capable of running the game but one that leaves considerable headroom for maximum visual fidelity. Benchmark results indicate that at 1080p and 1440p, the frame rates become so high that the CPU’s role diminishes, while at 4K the GPU load scales predictably, yet the RTX 4070 Ti remains the dominant factor. This analysis breaks down the measured performance, contextualizes the ranking among other tested combos, and isolates the contributions of each component.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this combo covers three resolutions and four settings presets, with average frame rates provided for each configuration. At 1920x1080, the lowest resolution tested, performance is nothing short of staggering. The Low preset averages 364.3 FPS, while Medium reaches 302.2 FPS, and High dips slightly to 247 FPS. Even the Ultra preset, which typically imposes the heaviest load, maintains an average of 153.3 FPS. These numbers indicate that at 1080p, the system is rarely constrained by any single component; the frame rates are so elevated that they approach the practical limits of display technology rather than the hardware’s ceiling. The gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 211 FPS, which is a substantial drop but still leaves Ultra far above any playability concern.

Moving to 2560x1440, the pattern continues but with a noticeable shift in scaling. The Low preset averages 262 FPS, Medium produces 212.8 FPS, and High delivers 173.4 FPS. The Ultra preset, which at 1080p had dropped to 153.3 FPS, now falls to 108.3 FPS at 1440p. This represents a 45 FPS reduction from the 1080p Ultra result, a drop of roughly 29%. The scaling between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 153.7 FPS, which is narrower than the 211 FPS gap observed at 1080p, suggesting that the GPU is beginning to become a more significant contributor to the performance envelope. Still, every preset at this resolution clears 100 FPS, indicating that the system has ample headroom for high-refresh-rate monitors.

At 3840x2160, the 4K results reveal the true nature of the workload. The Low preset averages 166.2 FPS, which is still remarkably high for 4K gaming. Medium drops to 132.5 FPS, and High settles at 110.2 FPS. The Ultra preset, the most demanding configuration, averages 69.6 FPS. This is the only tested scenario where the frame rate falls below 100 FPS, and it remains comfortably above the 60 FPS playability threshold. The scaling from 1440p Ultra to 4K Ultra is a reduction of 38.7 FPS, from 108.3 to 69.6, which translates to a 35.7% performance hit. This is a larger relative drop than the 1080p-to-1440p transition, confirming that 4K Ultra is where the RTX 4070 Ti begins to feel meaningful pressure. However, the absolute numbers show that even this pressure does not threaten playability.

It is important to note that min and max FPS values are not present in the data, so the analysis relies solely on averages. The absence of frame time variance data means that stutter or hitch behavior cannot be assessed, but the average frame rates are so high that transient dips would need to be severe to compromise the experience. The consistency of the scaling across presets suggests a well-behaved performance curve, with no anomalous spikes or collapses in the measured averages.

How This Combo Ranks

In the context of all tested combinations for Downfall, this specific CPU-GPU pairing ranks 483rd out of 3,716 combos. This places it in the top 13% of all configurations evaluated, a strong showing that reflects the high absolute performance observed in the measured FPS data. The rank of 483 is not a top-tier placement, which makes sense given that the RTX 4070 Ti, while powerful, is not the flagship GPU in NVIDIA’s lineup, and the Core i5-12400F is a mid-range processor. Yet the combination outperforms the vast majority of tested systems, indicating that Downfall does not require extreme hardware to achieve excellent results.

The percentile data for the individual components provides additional context. The CPU has a percentile of 73 against all CPUs, meaning it outperforms 73% of processors in the benchmark database. The GPU has a percentile of 84 against all GPUs, outperforming 84% of graphics cards. The fact that the GPU ranks higher than the CPU suggests that the graphics card is the stronger component in this pairing, which aligns with the FPS data showing GPU-bound behavior at higher resolutions. The combo rank of 483 out of 3,716 is consistent with these percentiles; a system with a 73rd-percentile CPU and an 84th-percentile GPU would be expected to land in the upper quartile of overall combos, and the data confirms this.

When interpreting the rank, it is crucial to recognize that the field of 3,716 combos includes a wide range of hardware, from entry-level integrated graphics to multi-GPU flagship setups. Placing 483rd means that this combo sits ahead of 3,233 other configurations, which is a decisive majority. For a horror game like Downfall, which likely prioritizes atmosphere and lighting effects over massive open-world CPU workloads, this rank signals that users can expect a smooth, high-fidelity experience without needing to compromise on settings. The data does not provide a percentile for the combo rank itself, but the absolute position is informative: only 13% of tested combos achieve better results.

CPU and GPU Roles

The division of labor between the Intel Core i5-12400F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti becomes clearer when examining the FPS scaling across resolutions and presets. At 1920x1080, the frame rates are extraordinarily high, with the Low preset reaching 364.3 FPS. Such numbers far exceed what most displays can refresh, and they indicate that neither the CPU nor the GPU is being pushed to its limit. However, the drop from Low to Ultra at 1080p is 211 FPS, which is a significant reduction that can be attributed to the GPU handling more complex shaders, textures, and lighting effects. The CPU, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, has ample headroom at this resolution, as the per-frame CPU workload does not scale dramatically with graphical settings. The i5-12400F’s single-thread performance, evidenced by a 3DMark single-thread score of 909 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1680, is sufficient to feed the GPU at these frame rates.

At 2560x1440, the GPU’s role becomes more pronounced. The average FPS at Ultra drops from 153.3 at 1080p to 108.3 at 1440p, a 29.3% reduction that closely tracks the increase in pixel count (from 2.07 million to 3.69 million pixels, a 78% increase). The fact that the frame rate does not drop proportionally to the pixel count suggests that other factors, such as memory bandwidth and fill rate, are mitigating the load. The RTX 4070 Ti’s 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus provides 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth, which is adequate for 1440p Ultra in this title. The CPU’s influence at this resolution is still present but diminished; the gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 153.7 FPS, compared to 211 FPS at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is becoming the limiting factor as settings increase.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is unequivocally the dominant component. The 4K Ultra result of 69.6 FPS is a 35.7% drop from the 1440p Ultra result, which aligns closely with the pixel count increase from 1440p to 4K (3.69 million to 8.29 million pixels, a 125% increase). The fact that the frame rate does not halve despite the pixel count more than doubling suggests that the RTX 4070 Ti’s architecture, with 7,680 shading units and 240 texture mapping units, is well-suited to this workload. The CPU’s role at 4K is minimal; the i5-12400F’s multi-thread performance, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 12,380 and a PassMark multithread score of 19,433, is more than sufficient to keep up with the GPU’s frame production. The data shows that the CPU’s 3DMark 16-thread score of 5,895 and max-thread score of 5,912 indicate a processor that can handle the game’s thread scheduling without becoming a bottleneck, but at 4K, the GPU’s raw compute power is the primary determinant of frame rate.

The scaling between Low and Ultra at each resolution further illustrates this division. At 1080p, the Low-to-Ultra ratio is 364.3 to 153.3, meaning Ultra produces 42.1% of the Low frame rate. At 1440p, the ratio is 262 to 108.3, with Ultra producing 41.3% of Low. At 4K, the ratio is 166.2 to 69.6, with Ultra producing 41.9% of Low. The consistency of this ratio across resolutions indicates that the GPU’s performance scaling with settings is uniform, regardless of resolution. This uniformity suggests that the CPU is never the limiting factor; if the CPU were struggling, the ratio would degrade at lower resolutions where frame rates are highest. The steady ratio is evidence that the RTX 4070 Ti handles the graphical load proportionally, while the i5-12400F provides consistent frame delivery without imposing a ceiling.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the CPU and GPU provide insight into what other hardware would behave similarly in this game. For the Intel Core i5-12400F, the closest benchmark performers are the AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS, the Intel Core 3 201E, the Intel Core i5-1335U, and the AMD EPYC 7773X. The AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS has an average benchmark score of 19,047, which is essentially identical to the i5-12400F’s average score of 19,039, with a delta of 0%. This means that in CPU-bound scenarios, the Ryzen 5 7535HS would deliver nearly identical performance. The Intel Core 3 201E scores 19,056, a 0.1% advantage over the i5-12400F, placing it within the same performance envelope. The Intel Core i5-1335U scores 18,982, which is 0.3% lower, while the AMD EPYC 7773X scores 18,979, also 0.3% lower. These deltas are all within 0.3% of the i5-12400F’s score, meaning that in Downfall, any of these CPUs would produce frame rates that are statistically indistinguishable from the i5-12400F. The practical implication is that the CPU is not a differentiator in this game; the i5-12400F’s performance is representative of a broad category of mid-range processors.

For the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti, the nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile, the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT, the NVIDIA RTX A6000, and the Intel Arc A730M. The RTX 5090 Mobile has an average score of 45,152, which is 0.8% lower than the RTX 4070 Ti’s 44,795, despite being a newer mobile part. The AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT scores 45,384, a 1.3% advantage, while the NVIDIA RTX A6000 scores 44,075, a 1.6% deficit. The Intel Arc A730M scores 45,592, which is 1.7% higher. These deltas range from -1.7% to +1.3%, which is a narrow band. In Downfall, a game that appears to scale well with GPU compute, these rivals would produce frame rates within a few percent of the RTX 4070 Ti. For example, if the RTX 4070 Ti averages 69.6 FPS at 4K Ultra, the Intel Arc A730M, with a 1.7% higher benchmark score, might average around 70.8 FPS, while the NVIDIA RTX A6000, with a 1.6% lower score, might average around 68.5 FPS. These differences are within the margin of error for real-world testing and would not be perceptible to the user.

The similarity of these alternatives means that users with any of these components can expect comparable performance in Downfall. The GPU is the more impactful component, given that its nearest rivals show a wider spread of benchmark scores relative to the CPU’s rivals, but even that spread is modest. The data suggests that Downfall is not particularly sensitive to the specific GPU model, as long as it falls within this performance tier. The RTX 4070 Ti’s position, with a percentile of 84, places it firmly in the upper echelon, and its rivals are all within a small delta of its score, reinforcing the idea that this performance class is well-populated with capable hardware.

Best Settings per Resolution

The best settings for each resolution are determined by the most demanding preset that maintains an average frame rate at or above the 60 FPS playability threshold. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is the clear choice, with an average of 153.3 FPS. This is more than double the playability threshold, and no other preset at this resolution offers a meaningful advantage in terms of playability, since even the most demanding setting is far above 60 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1080p is the best option for users who want maximum visual quality without sacrificing frame rate headroom for high-refresh-rate displays.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset again delivers the best experience, averaging 108.3 FPS. This is comfortably above 60 FPS, providing a 48.3 FPS cushion. The High preset at 1440p averages 173.4 FPS, but Ultra offers a more complete visual experience with only a 65.1 FPS reduction from High. Since both presets clear 60 FPS, Ultra is the recommended setting for 1440p users who prioritize image quality, while those with 144 Hz or higher refresh monitors might still prefer High for the extra frame rate, but the data shows that Ultra remains playable and smooth.

At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset averages 69.6 FPS, which is just 9.6 FPS above the 60 FPS threshold. This is the only resolution where the margin is slim, but it still clears the bar. The High preset at 4K averages 110.2 FPS, offering a 40.6 FPS advantage over Ultra, but it does so at the cost of reduced visual fidelity. For users with 4K displays, the Ultra preset is the best choice if they are willing to accept a frame rate that is close to the threshold, while High is a safer option for those who prefer more headroom. The Medium preset at 4K averages 132.5 FPS, and Low averages 166.2 FPS, but neither is necessary given that Ultra is already playable. The data indicates that this combo can run Downfall at maximum settings at all three resolutions, with 4K Ultra being the most demanding scenario but still within playable limits.

The Verdict

This PC can absolutely run Downfall, and it can do so at the highest settings across all tested resolutions. The verdict by resolution is unambiguous: at 3840x2160, the playable settings include High, Low, Medium, and Ultra, with the best settings being Ultra at an average of 69.6 FPS. At 2560x1440, all four settings are playable, with Ultra averaging 108.3 FPS. At 1920x1080, all settings are playable, with Ultra averaging 153.3 FPS. The 60 FPS playability threshold is cleared by every preset at every resolution, which is a remarkable outcome for a horror game that likely features demanding lighting and shadow effects.

The Intel Core i5-12400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti combination is overqualified for Downfall. The GPU’s 84th-percentile standing and the CPU’s 73rd-percentile standing combine to produce a system that not only meets but far exceeds the requirements for smooth gameplay. The 4K Ultra result of 69.6 FPS is the weakest performance point, yet it still offers a 16% margin above the playability threshold. For users with 1440p or 1080p monitors, the frame rates are so high that the limiting factor becomes the display’s refresh rate rather than the hardware. The data supports a confident verdict: this system will deliver a flawless experience in Downfall at any resolution, with no need to compromise on settings.